I gave 3 illustrators the same page out of my first book.. This was the first illustration I received.. I was happy but not impressed. I also didn’t have anything to compare it to..

This was the third illustration I received and it blew me away.. Compared to the first sketch this set the bar high. To be honest this changed everything for me.. This made my book more then I thought it was going to be.. It also opened me up to creating a series of books and not just one and done.. My advice to other authors.. “test the waters”, there are so many talented illustrators with different styles. You owe it to your book and yourself to not settle.. The right illustrator will bring your book to life and may change your life at the same time..

1. Like my last 2 books I want my 3rd book to inspire kids to explore and seek adventure.. To go outside wonder around and let their imagination run.. 2. I’m about 75% complete with the 3rd book and had to put it away for the time being.. I want to think through where I am and where I want to go with the story. I have the beginning, middle and end but I need to polish it a bit.. 3.When the book gets finished and I publish it.. Kids will be ready go on their own adventure and learn about their own town history and maybe find old treasures..

My first book is all about “Exploring Underwater Sea Life”, I want the kids to want to go outside and explore their neighborhood, town, or local beach. My second book is all about teaching kids to protect sea turtles and the importance of keeping the ocean and beaches clean of trash and plastic.. I want kids to learn to pick up after themselves as well as pick up plastic they see on the beach or floating in the ocean.

The school contacted me to present to the 2nd grade class.. The 2nd grade was going to write their own book as a year long project and the teacher would get it published for the kids through a school workshop.. I was invited to talk about the process of writing a book and the steps I took from start to publishing. I spent 1hr going over the fundamentals of storytelling and how I laid it out on paper. I also brought rough drafts of the illustrations not colored and final stages of coloring. I finished off the presentation by reading my first book. At the end of the school year I was invited back to present to the 1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th grades and finished the day with the 2nd grade reading to me their finished books.. it was awesome.. One of the teachers transferred to another school and she contacted me to present to her school and just today the original school contacted me to present again to the new 2nd grade.. This time I will showcase my second book.. What I took away from the kids was how much of an impression a book can make on a child. It can fill their imagination with ideas, creativity and excitement.. Thats when I realized every story needs a lesson. Something the kids will remember for good and carry with them.

@Nina Larbalestrier … Hello Nina, I’m not sure how many other Authors were in the running.. I was told by a few teachers that previous Authors did not present very well.. I’ve taken public speaking courses in the past so I don’t have any issue being in front of people for any length of time.. I like to get the kids engaged in conversation and excited to share their thoughts. I make sure to have multiple visual items and handouts to keep the kids interested and involved. The book reading is only half of my presentation.

Great topic. I found it important that I periodically took a step back. Put the story down for a week and think about where it is and where I want to take it.. My last book was 90% complete. One morning I woke up and had an idea, a vision of another chapter that completely changed the ending but added so much more value to the story.. Being stuck is normal… taking a break is normal.. it’s your story, the ideas will start to flow…. Get up, go for a walk, “motion creates emotion”… the breakthrough will come.